Australia's National Coral Bleaching Task force says the country's Great Barrier Reef is facing the "worst mass bleaching event in its history."
澳大利亚全国珊瑚白化工作组认为，该国的大堡礁正面临其历史上最严重的大规模白化事件。
The reef is a United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage site. It has more than 400 species of coral and 1,500 kinds of fish. It is the only reef that is a Heritage site, a place that is named by UNESCO as having special cultural or physical significance.
这些珊瑚礁是联合国教科文组织世界遗产，它拥有400多种珊瑚以及1500多种鱼类，也是珊瑚礁之中唯一被联合国教科文组织认定为具有特殊文化或物理意义的世界遗产。
The reef is along the northeastern coast of Australia. It is three quarters the size of the western American state of California.
这些珊瑚礁位于澳大利亚东北海岸沿线，它的面积是美国西部的加州的四分之三。
Bleaching happens when sea temperatures rise. Higher temperatures cause the coral to force out colorful algae. The coral becomes white.
当海水温度升高就会发生白化现象。更高的温度导致珊瑚礁排出彩色海藻，从而使珊瑚变白。
If the water temperature falls, the process could reverse. Algae could return to the coral. If it does not, the coral could die.
如果水温下降，这一过程可以逆转。藻类会重新回到珊瑚。如果这些没有发生，珊瑚可能会死亡。
Researchers examined aerial surveys of more than 500 reefs north of the city of Cairns. The researchers said most of the reefs suffered from severe bleaching.
研究人员检查了对凯恩斯市北部500多个珊瑚礁的空中勘察。研究人员表示，其中大多数珊瑚礁发生了严重白化。
Terry Hughes leads the National Coral Bleaching Taskforce.
特里·休斯（Terry Hughes）领导着澳大利亚全国珊瑚白化工作组。
He said "this has been the saddest research trip of my life."
他说，“这是我一生之中最悲伤的研究之旅。”
"We flew for 4,000 kilometers in the most pristine parts of the Great Barrier Reef and saw only four reefs that had no bleaching. The severity is much greater than in earlier bleaching events in 2002 or 1998," he said.
他说，“我们在大堡礁最原始的地区飞行了四千多公里，只看到四个珊瑚礁没有白化。这一严重程度比2002年或1998年的早期白化事件要严重得多。”
Hughes also said "it's still too early to tell just what the overall outcome will be. We will continue to conduct underwater surveys along the Great Barrier Reef in the coming months as the full impact of this mass bleaching event unfolds."
休斯还表示，“现在谈总体结果会如何尚为时过早。随着这一大规模白化事件全面影响的呈现，未来数月我们将继续沿大堡礁进行水下调查。”
Hughes said the most of the severe bleaching was in the northern part of the reef. He says the southern part was not as affected because of "cloudy weather that cooled the water temperatures."
休斯表示，白化最为严重的是北部的珊瑚礁。他说，南部的珊瑚礁没有受到这么严重的影响，是因为多云天气冷却了水温。
He said the bleaching was likely made worse by the strong El Niño event in the Pacific Ocean. The Washington Post reports there have been three recorded mass bleaching events -- in 1998, 2010 and this year. All three took place at the same time as the El Niño event.
他说，太平洋的强厄尔尼诺事件可能会让白化变得更加严重。华盛顿邮报报道称有三次有记录的大规模白化事件，分别是1998年、2010年以及今年。所有这三次白化事件都发生在厄尔尼诺事件同期。
I'm Ashley Thompson.
我是阿什利·汤普森。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利，未经授权请勿转载，违者必究！)